On Friday, March 23, the first blast (Big Bang Event) occurred at Las Campanas Peak in Chile, at high noon US Eastern Daylight Time. It marked the beginning of mountain leveling and site preparation for the Giant Magellan Telescope.

The Giant Magellan Telescope will be one of the next class of super giant, earth-based telescopes that promises to revolutionize our view and understanding of the universe. It will be operational in about 10 years.

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The GMT Partners are: Astronomy Australia Ltd., The Australian National University, Carnegie Institution for Science, Harvard University, Korea Astronomy and Space Science Institute, Smithsonian Institution, The University of Texas at Austin, Texas A&M University, The University of Arizona, and the University of Chicago.www.gmto.org